We are dripping sweat from every pore you can imagine.
Truly, this is not an exaggeration. If you were not aware, you can in fact
sweat from your inner ear and between your fingers and toes. But as the sweat
beads dribble down the back of my calf, I find myself even more in tune to the
mighty work that the Lord is doing here in Phuket. For those of you who want to
practically see the ways in which He
is moving, here is a nice daily lay out of daily life with SHE Ministries.
Disclaimer: for protection of the ministry from the dangers of the work, the
details about being in the red light district will be a little scant. Sorry.
Visit their website to find out more about the work being done here.
Every day one of the 31 racers living here leads a devotional
at 8:30 AM while two more of us watch kids of the women who work here. Otherwise, the rest of us roll out of bed mid morning and help ourselves to a standard, hearty bowl of
corn flakes. Brown sugar: a definite must. On a day when the torrential summer rain does NOT happen, I try to squeeze in a run around the dam–and hopefully a shower before team time at 10:30.
After team time, eat lunch around 11:30. At
this time, there are over 75 people living in the two houses, so getting full
on rice and noodles is always a day-by-day adventure.
Around 1 o’clock, our
four teams split into the two groups in which we serve and we rotate schedules every other day. So. On days like today,
my team and Team Uzulu climb in the truck with the weed whackers and generator
in the beating sun and drive a good half hour to another piece of property
where SHE is planning on opening new centers in the future. We paint, we plant
trees, and we weed whack (yes, even me) the land to pieces.
After a few hours
of direct sunlight and sweaty ears, we hop back in the truck and head to the
beach for a fifteen-minute cool down in some of the world’s most beautiful
ocean.
Dripping in salt-water head to toe, we climb back in the truck and
cruise our way past the monkeys (can’t explain why they are there) and through
five o’clock traffic back to our home. More noodles, rice, and chicken are
consumed before we have an hour or two to get ready for the late night ahead of
us. Around eight o’clock, all the teams re-gather in the upstairs of one of the
houses, we worship, we jam out, we declare our identities in the Lord, and we
prepare for the battle ahead of us that night. At 8:45 the two other teams pile
into our truck and head for a night in the red light district. The other two
teams stay put in the upstairs and spend the next few hours interceding for the
teams that are in the bars. We worship, we dance like crazy, we pray, we listen
for the Lord’s peace and victory, and we just live in the thick of fellowship. It’s
incredible. Always.
Now on the other days, life proceeds as follows. Around 1
PM, we break up to do all sorts of tasks around the house from washing windows and
office work to baking cookies, cooking dinner, and making tile designs for the
new center. At least during these afternoons we can stay inside sheltered from
the afternoon sun. After dinner, free time, and worship, the opposite two teams
head out to the red light district to pass a few hours in ministry. Again to
protect the organization, go ahead and go to their website to see exactly what
we are up to. In these nights we spend out, it is incredible to see just how
much the Lord is working to tear down the sex tourism that pervades this city.
His heart for His children is so evident, and His love completely annihilates
the flaming arrows of the enemy.
When we get home from these nights out, we debrief everything that has gone on in the past few hours and remind ourselves that the Lord already has victory–that we are his warriors charged with bringing Good News of His victory.
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I am still in the red zone for financial support! We have a
July 1st deadline rolling in, and I am asking that you would
consider helping me fill in that last $1,400 in the next two weeks. Our squad
is witnessing the Lord pouring out the storehouses of heaven on us, and if you’d
like to be a part of that blessing, then go under my picture and click “support
me, por favor.� Thank you to all of you who have already been so wonderful in
helping me get this far in the journey. You have no idea all the ways the Lord
has multiplied your blessings.
